Locals win both full and half marathons at Fore

Runners from the local parish won the half marathon and full marathon races in Fore on Saturday February 17 last.

Mick Fagan was first in the half in a time of 1 hour 33 minutes and Kevin Lambe was first in the marathon distance in a time of 3 hours 10 minutes.

They were among the 48 runners who took part in the series of races on the day. The first race was the marathon walk, covering the full distance of 42km, at 7.30am, which was followed by the half-marathon and full marathon events at 8.30am.

The conditions were windy and rainy on race morning as the walkers and runners set out to tackle a hilly route on several loops around the Benedictine ruins of Fore Abbey, through the Seven Wonders, alongside St Feichin’s Well, up through the village and over by Lough Lene.

The events are organised annually by the Marathon Club of Ireland and attract athletes from around the country to the beautiful north Westmeath terrain.